Danish home furnishing store JSYK will open their first Cork store before Christmas - and the company has aggressive plans to open up to six new stores across the Rebel County in the coming years.

A spokesperson for the global chain - seen as IKEA's biggest rivals across Europe - confirmed that Cork is central to their plans as they look to build on the success of the first store, opened in Naas, Co Kildare in April.

The chain now plans up to 40 Irish stores over the next three-to-five years, investing up to €70m and creating hundreds of jobs, CorkBeo reports.

"The first JYSK Cork store will open in Youghal before Christmas, with November the favoured time," said the spokesperson.

"JYSK believe there is scope for at least 2 to 6 stores in Cork and they are actively seeking locations."

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The company is calling on property owners who may have suitable premises attend a meet and greet in the Red Cow Moran Hotel in Dublin on Monday, 16th September, 2019, from 9am.

"Landlords from across the country are invited to come along, meet with the JYSK team and present their available properties on the day. JYSK are hoping to find more suitable Cork locations as soon as possible."

The Danish chain were founded 40 years ago and has expanded in to 51 countries, with more than 2,700 stores worldwide employing 23,000 people.

They had initially announced plans for 15 stores over two years in Ireland, with Naas to be followed by Drogheda, Navan and Portlaoise this year. These plans have now been beefed-up and accelerated, with Cork set to be the hub of the chain's operations for Munster.